Little Lupin
by mjeleon
Summary: When a potion goes wrong and Remus Lupin becomes a little five-year-old, what will the rest of Hogwarts do? Marauder-era. R&R!
1. Oops

Disclaimer: Just about everything here belongs to JK *-_sigh_-* I just get to do evil things to them :)

Summary: When a potion goes wrong and Remus Lupin becomes a five-year-old, what will the rest of Hogwarts do? Marauder-era. R&R!

Author's note: I know the plot has been used a million times, just wanted to see what I could do with it.

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Professor Slughorn whistled, his mind wandering. He was mentally going over a list of possible candidates for a little tea party he was planning on throwing soon, a vial of fresh snacklebat liver in his hand. He'd had to go to Poppy for that, he'd been fresh out, and she was the only other one in the school who might have a store of those due to their excellent medicinal properties. Yesinia Feerfallow, the Arithmacy professor, and Minerva McGonagall had both often warned him not to leave the class unattended, especially with those famous "Marauders", but he'd ignored them. After all, how much trouble could a few fifth years be? He was about to find out.

As he walked through the dungeons, approaching his classroom, he could hear muffled yelling, shrieking, and laughing. Then he was able to make out voices:

"_What did you do?"  
"For Merlin's sake!"  
"Moony?"  
"SIRIUS BLACK, YOU AND POTTER HAVE GOT TO BE THE STUPIDEST-"  
"Lily, it's not like-"  
"What happened?  
"Is that…?"  
"Huh…"  
"Oh my GOD!"  
"I OUGHT TO-"  
"Hahahahahahahaha!"  
"You've __**got**__ to be kidding me!"_

Professor Slughorn quickened his pace, bursting through the door, and gasped. A giant cauldron lay on its side, its buttery-yellow contents dripping all over the floor. A crowd of students had assembled around it, whispering excitedly. Lily Evans, James Potter, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew were crowded around the middle. Slughorn rapidly set down the vial in his hands and impatiently pushed his way into the center of the mob, trying to see what all the fuss was about.

When he laid his eyes upon it, they grew wide, "Merlin! Is that…" A young boy stood there, probably age six or seven, gazing up with fearful, brown eyes, the sticky potion clinging to his light brown hair and now incredibly oversized robes.

"Remus Lupin," Lily finished matter-of-factly, glaring at James and Sirius; both were trying to contain their laughter.

"Tattletale," Peter grumbled.

"Hi…" the boy said shyly, before his eyes began to water.

"I… Ahem… This has never happened before… I… Oh! Miss Evans, take Lupin to the Headmaster, he'll know what to do." Lily nodded, scooping up little Remus into her arms. At first he squirmed a little, frightened, but she whispered something in his ear and he settled down.

Slughorn continued, "Black, Pettigrew, Potter, go along with Miss Evans. I suspect you three had something to do with this?" Lily groaned at the thought of those three following her, but nodded nonetheless and walked out without looking behind her.

Slughorn quickly cleaned up the mess with a wave of his wand and settled back onto his chair at the front of the class, sighing, "Indeed…"

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Short, but it's just the first chappie. Read and review please!


	2. Animosity

Disclaimer: Just about everything here belongs to JK *-_sigh_-* I just get to do evil things to them :)

Summary: When a potion goes wrong and Remus Lupin becomes a five-year-old, what will the rest of Hogwarts do? Marauder-era. R&R!

Author's note: I know the plot has been used a million times, just wanted to see what I could do with it.

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The second the group stepped out of the classroom, Sirius and James exploded with laughter. Peter seemed still surprised, eyeing the bundle in Lily's arms with obvious interest. Lily glared at all three of them.

"Hand him here," Sirius demanded as soon as he'd been able to contain his laughter. But Remus shied away from him and Lily threw Sirius a thin smile.

"As if I would trust _you_ with a child, _Black_."

"What about me Evans?" James asked, offering her his biggest grin, "You would trust _me_ right?"

"Maybe in an alternate universe Potter," she shot back, and hitched Remus up a little, walking briskly down the hallway.

"He's _our_ friend Evans," Sirius said more seriously now (A/n: serious Sirius, hehe).

"Do you want to be with those big meanies?" she cooed at Remus.

Sirius narrowed his eyes at her and Remus bit his lip. They were all watching him now, and he grabbed a fold of the robe and covered his face with it. He was obviously afraid.

"It's okay," Lily whispered, before turning to the rest of the boys, "There you go. He doesn't even _want_ to be with you, Black. OR YOU," she shot at James, who seemed about to try his luck.

Sirius protested, "Not fair Evans, you're brain-washing him! Psh, _women_."

Lily barked out a laugh, "Ha! As if I needed to brain-wash anyone. It's a fact that the you and Potter are the most immature boys in the entire school."

"And me?" Peter suddenly piped up.

"What about you?"

"I just want to carry him. I wouldn't drop him or anything."

"No."

"No?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Those two idiots would probably whisk him away in a split second, Pettigrew, that's why," she huffed, spotting the gargoyle at the entrance of Dumbledore's office.

"Ooo, whisk! Sounds naughty Evans," Sirius quipped.

"Whisk me Evans!" James proclaimed, eyebrows waggling suggestively.

She whipped around, peering at him, her temper flaring, "Do either of you even know what that means?" Silence. "Exactly."

"Is Moony even alive there?" Peter thought to ask, referring to the silent, still bundle of clothes that was Remus Lupin.

"Nah, Evans has smothered him to death with her _bosom_," Sirius commented.

James sighed, "Ah, lucky dog. Smart one that Moony. I ought to try that sometime, eh Lily?"

"If both of you don't SHUT UP this instant, I'll hex into next year!"

"Tsk, tsk, what temper," James whispered.

Lily scowled as they arrived at Dumbledore's office, muttering, "_Peppermint Patties_." And the gargoyle moved aside.

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Dumbledore's blue eyes twinkled with amusement as Lily presented to him the six or seven-year-old Remus Lupin. She vaguely explained the situation before setting down the bundle onto the floor. Remus struggled a bit before emerging, and a quick spell from Dumbledore shrunk the robes to fit him. Most of the yellow slime of the potion had been wiped off, but some remained. Particularly a small blob on his left cheek. With the stains, messy hair and trembling face, he was quite pitiful. The others watched Dumbledore in silence.

Dumbledore cleared his throat, addressing the boy, "Good evening. I am Professor Dumbledore. And you are?"

The boy looked at the floor, biting his lip, "Lupin… sir… I'm Lupin… pleasure to… meet… you?" He looked up then, as if wanting to know if he'd said the right thing.

"Pleasure to meet you too my boy." Then he turned to the older students. "I think that since you three are his closest friends, it would be only natural that you care for the boy until we can reverse the situation?"

The three nodded, grinning. Lily raised an eyebrow, surprised.

But Dumbledore wasn't finished, "Of course, I'm sure Miss Evans wouldn't mind checking in on you. In fact, I'm sure we can clear out a few rooms for all of you. Obviously we can't have young Lupin with the rest of the students. You agree?"

All of them nodded now.

"Very well then. In the meantime, see that Professor Slughorn finds the cure to this potions particular effect." At that moment, Professor McGonagall stumbled in.

"Professor," she gasped, "Is it true? I heard…" and then her eyes fell on the quivering form of Remus, her gaze hardening when it turned to the three older boys, "Speaking of iresponsibilities."

"Now Minerva…" Dumbledore said with a smile, "Would you mind showing the vacant dorm I discovered a while back?"

She nodded, her lips thin and upturned.

"Excellent. The five of you are dismissed from classes for the rest of the day. Tomorrow you'll have to figure some rotating schedule for the care of Lupin, I suppose, so you might want to discuss that tonight. Very well then, Minerva."

"Follow me," she said curtly. Lily followed automatically, noticing far too late that Sirius was too close to Remus and had already picked him up. As they stepped out into the corridor, Remus squirmed, hiding under his arms.

"Oi, Moony! Come on, don't be such a wet blanket, eh?" James remarked, trying to find his old friend in this young boy. The boy blinked back uncertainly.

"Who… who are you?"

"I'm Prongs," he continued, "This is Padfoot and Wormtail." Then he added in a lower, joking, proud voice, "And we're the best friends you'll ever have." Siruis grinned and set the boy down, but the instant he did Remus had run after Lily as fast as his short legs could carry him, hugging her leg and staring at the other three boys.

Lily laughed and picked him up, muttering, "Don't listen to them. They're crazy."

Sirius frowned at Peter and James, but they both shrugged. Who knew what was going on in Moony's head?

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Ah, the animosity begins! Poor Remus! Anyways, please R&R! Comments are always very much appreciated!


	3. Fear and Friendship

Disclaimer: Just about everything here belongs to JK *-_sigh_-* I just get to do evil things to them :)

Summary: When a potion goes wrong and Remus Lupin becomes a five-year-old, what will the rest of Hogwarts do? Marauder-era. R&R!

Author's note: I know the plot has been used a million times, just wanted to see what I could do with it.

Thanks to oggiethefroggie and Fred-Weasley-Isn't-Dead for reviewing! (Fred-Weasley-Isn't-Dead, you can baby-sit Little Lupin, hahahaha)

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Nodding at all of them, McGonagall left. They'd had to walk quite some time, at the far, far end of the castle. It was a fairly small dorm, with a few empty, dusty rooms, as if it had been only half-finished, and it was hard to access unless you knew what you were looking for. It simply appeared as a cluster of rooms on the Marauder's (nearly perfect) map. The rug was a rich violet, as well as the couch and the bedspreads. There was only one room for girls and one for boys, not separated by years as it was with the Houses. They found that their things had already been brought, presumably by house-elves and settled into the room.

"Come along now Remus," Lily whispered, taking him over to the couch.

"Want to play some Exploding Snap?" she asked, getting up and jogging to her room to retrieve a set of cards.

He frowned after her, "What's that?"

"Seriously, does he not know _anything_?" Sirius wondered out loud, starting to get annoyed by Remus' evidently lacking memory.

Remus bit his lip and started at the floor, mumbling, "Sorry…"

Sirius looked up in surprise, "What for?"

"Not knowing stuffs… I'm not very smart." He sniffed.

Sirius cringed, not knowing what to do. Lily hadn't heard a thing; she was still looking for the cards. Peter shrugged. Finally James approached the boy, kneeling beside him and ruffling his hair, "You're smart, kiddo. Very smart."

At first the boy ducked out of the way, but then he slowly looked back up, a shy grin on his face, "I am?"

Sirius nodded, trying to make it up to the kid, "Sure Moony, very smart."

"Moony?"

"Er… Remus," Sirius corrected himself, "Right." He looked around, bored, before heading over to light the fireplace.

"How old are you?" Peter asked, settling onto a plush armchair nearby.

"Six," he said, holding up his fingers.

"Unbelievable…" Peter gasped, "I didn't even know that could happen…"

Remus frowned, "Did I do something wrong?"

"Nah," James shook his head, "That was just… er…"

"Big-people talk," Lily cut in, a shiny new deck in her hand, "That was just big-people talk. You want to play now? It's in teams of two. I'll teach you!"

Remus nodded timidly, then pointed at James, "Can I be on Pro- Prr- Prongsie's team?"

Sirius cackled from the fireplace, "Prongsie? Seriously Lupin, Prongsie?"

"Sorry… I'm sorry," he mumbled crest-fallen.

"I'll be on your team," James nodded at Remus and winked at Lily. She rolled her eyes but started to deal.

"Oi, Pettigrew!" she called as she started shuffling, "You want in?"

Peter stared at Sirius' hunched figure for a moment before nodding, "I'll play."

As they began the first round Sirius fanned the fire in the chimney and withdrew his wand. He glared at the group for a second before stalking off to the boy's room, muttering, "I didn't want to play anyway."

Remus watched him go guiltily, feeling as if it was all his fault. But just as he was about to say something, the first card exploded, and he shrieked with surprise. Lily was immediately fawning over him, asking him if he was okay.

"Brilliant Lupin," James chuckled, "Keep the enemy distracted!"

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"You wanna play again Remus?" Lily asked, her cheeks pink from laughing.

Remus shook his head adamantly.

"But we won!" James exclaimed, "We beat them down!"

Lily huffed, "Just because _Pettigrew_ didn't do a thing."

Peter turned red, mumbling sheepishly, "I'm not very good."

"Ah, excuses Wormtail," James said slightly, "Methinks you were sabotaging Lily's team. Excellent maraudery, comrade!"

"It's scary," Remus whispered.

"What is?" Lily asked at once.

"The cards… they just go BOOM!" and he made exaggerated hand gestures to match. The others laughed, and Remus bit his lip, a lopsided grin on his face. Then he yawned, thin arms stretching up into the air, his eyes scrunching up tightly.

"To bed with you Remus," Lily declared.

"That sounded _so wrong_," James snickered, and Peter followed suit. Only Remus stared, confused, mumbling, "I'm not tired…"

"Oh grow up," she snapped at James, "Get your head out of the gutter Potter."

"I say he ought to room with us," James said once he was able to quiet down, "We are, after all, Exlpoding Snap mates, eh Remus?"

Remus grinned, then turned to Lily, pointing at James, "Can I?"

Lily hesitated before nodding, "Sure, go ahead Remus." And then more quietly, "Don't let their craziness get to you. Tell me if they start to bother you, okay?"

Remus nodded happily and she bid them all goodnight before retiring to her room. Suddenly Remus' stomach grumbled, and he blushed, trying to muffle it with his arms.

"Hungry?" Peter asked knowingly. Remus slowly nodded.

"Come on Remus, let's go get food," James said, but Remus didn't budge, pointing at the stairs that led to the boys' room.

"Padfeets?" he murmured, clearly still worked up about Sirius' behavior.

"I'll get him," James offered, "Be right back."

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"Pads?" James called, knocking on the door, "Padfoot?" A particularly loud snore, clearly exaggerated, echoed in the room.

James sighed, making his way over to the snoring lump on one of the beds. Glaring at it for a moment, he poked it. Hard. "Come on you lazy bum, we're going to get dinner from the house-elves."

Sirius remained motionless, simply mumbling, in a mocking voice, "What _baby got hungry_?"

James sighed again, "Come off it Pads, it's only temporary."

Sirius sat up, "It's all Peter's stupid potion anyway. How come _we_ have to come along?"

"Blimey… what's wrong with you? This is _Moony_ we're talking about!"

"That kid was scared of me, you know? He didn't care, or want to play Exploding Snap on _my _team, or anything."

"Is that what this is about? Talk about stupid…"

"No! No… Right now he's just another stupid kid with boogers for brains. Even Regulus wasn't that dim."

"Sirius…"

"Look, Moony's a pretty brill mate and all… I just don't like kids, okay? They're annoying, stupid, and… _annoying_. I should know."

"Didn't you just say Regulus was alright?"

"My _brother_? I meant he was better than Moony, but trust me, he was pretty bad. In fact, he's probably the reason I don't like kids, the pretentious git."

"He's still you're brother…"

"We're not even _talking_ about this! I'm gonna sleep now. Have fun with _poor widdle baby Remus_ and let me be."

"Whatever," James hissed, turning to face the door, "Huh?" He was only able to glimpse the teary, familiar brown eyes for an instant before the boy had fled from the doorway. Even Sirius, pretending to already be asleep, heard the small feet thundering down the steps and dashing away.

"That was Moony, wasn't it?" Sirius mumbled, his face still smushed on the pillow.

"Yep."

"I have to go and get him now, don't I?"

"Yep."

"Can't Lily do it?"

"Are you insane? If she finds out you ran him off she'll kill as all."

"Quite a temper, that Evans."

"Indeed… And she gets this intense look in her eyes, it's like- Oi! You're changing the subject!"

Sirius groaned, "Alright, alright, let's go and get him before he gets into any trouble. Stupid oversensitive kids." Lazily he rolled off the bed, shaking his head and turning to his trunk. After a bit of shuffling he proudly held up the Marauder's map and James' invisibility cloak.

James frowned, "What were _you_ doing with my cloa-"

"No comment. Come on, let's go."

They found Peter in the armchair, staring at the entrance to their little common room. "He went that way…" he mumbled.

"And it never occurred to you to stop him did it?" Sirius said dryly, sliding on the cloak, obviously wishing he could still be in bed.

Peter shrugged, "He's like a _mini_ Remus… it's too weird."

Sirius gave James a pointed look (_I'm not the __**only**__ one_) before he too slipped under the cloak.

"_Marauders_," James whispered, and the map began to unfurl.

"We ought to have a different password you know," Sirius remarked, his disembodied voice floating over and out the door, "Something more meaningful. Like a pledge! _I pledge to be dishonest_… or _I promise to be maraudery_…. I dunno…"

"Maraudery?" James asked as he checked the map and continued to the left, "Seriously?"

"Very serious."

"Sirius? How serious?"

"Serious."

"So very serious then?"

"All Sirius."

"I see."

"ANYWAY. Or it could be…. I dunno… Oh! _I solemnly swear I'm up to no good_! Something like that… official sounding, you know?"

There was a pause, while James debated the best way to get to the little Remus dot on the map, continue or veer right, and then he finally stated, "Padfoot? That has to be the dorkiest idea I've ever heard, even for you."

"But it's brilliant, isn't it?"

Another pause. Sirius waited, and then the response he'd been waiting for:

"Extremely brilliant. Seriously, Sirius," James replied, grinning visibly from ear to ear, "Seriously." Suddenly he winced.

"What?"

"Snivellus found Moony."

"Lemme see…" Sure enough, there was the little dot labeled _Greasy Git_ right next to _Remus Lupin_.

"Great," James whispered sarcastically, "This is just bloody _perfect_."

"Come on, let's go." They folded the map back and tucked it away, running as best they could whilst wearing the cloak. Finally they stumbled upon another corridor. Remus was wiping his nose on his sleeve, tears falling freely down both his cheeks.

An unnaturally soft voice was coming from Snape, but it had an edge. Clearly he was fooling the boy, trying to get something from him.

"You can tell me," he hissed, "There's something else bothering you right? Something that happens every full moon… right?"

James threw off the cloak, "Get away from him _Snivellus_."

Remus stuck out his tongue at James, sniffing and shaking his head. Apparently he thought Snape was his new friend. The thought disgusted James.

"See? They don't care about you. You can tell me Lupin, trust me," Snape continued into his ear.

"How'd you know 'bout the moon thing?" Lupin asked, now ignoring James. Sirius was still hidden.

"I'm very clever, as are you, so go on. Tell me."

James couldn't let this play out. If _Snape_ found out about Remus' "furry little problem"…

"There's nothing to tell, Snivvy," he yelled, grabbing Remus' arm, "_Impedimenta_!" Snape stumbled to the ground, face first, his nose crashing against the floor.

"Wait… stop… stop!" Remus cried as James raised his wand. James let him go, surprised, and watched as Lupin ran over Snape. With all of his strength in his thin arms Remus rolled Snape over so that he was now facing up. Then he started to chew on his fingernail, rolling back and forth on his heels before crouching beside Snape and patting his shoulder. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he mumbled.

Sirius threw away the cloak, appearing out of thin air, and Remus gasped.

"Don't apologize to _him_," Sirius barked. Remus hid his head in Snape's robes, sniffling. Snape struggled a little.

"Get off me Lupin," he snarled.

"I'm sorry…" Remus whispered again. He was obviously confused, not knowing what to do. He got up and looked around, slowly backing away, and more tears fell from his face. "I… I…" He looked up at James and Sirius, his chin quivering, and then he ran to them, starting to sob, "I won't run away again, I promise. Let me be your friend. Please? Can I please be your friend? I'll be quiet, I will!"

James forgot all about Snape, ignoring the writhing figure. He crouched down beside Remus, ruffling his hair before wrapping his arms around him. Remus sobbed wildly into his shoulder, leaving trails of snot and tears, but James didn't mind.

"Sh…" he said, "It's okay." Arms still around the little boy he picked him up and stood. With a flick of his wand the spell was lifted, and Snape crawled to his feet.

"This isn't over, _Potter. Black._" And with that final note he was off. Sirius finally approached James.

"He never did that before," he commented, gesturing at Remus, "He never tried to stop us."

"I'm sorry…" Remus started again, but James shook his head, "It's okay Remus, it's okay." Then he turned to Sirius, saying with a warning tone of voice, "Padfoot…"

Sirius sighed, fingers digging into his own messy black hair, addressing Remus, "You're alright kid. You're okay."

Remus hid his tear-stained face in James' shoulder and Sirius sighed, "No, really. C'mere. I didn't mean those things I said before. Honest." He held out his arms and let James hand him the squirming kid. His arm cradled the boy and he even bounced him a few times, shushing him, "It's okay Remus. I'm not mad or anything. Promise." Remus nodded quietly, his thin arms winding around Sirius' neck and he leaned his head on his shoulder, his tears finally stopping.

"Let's go get something to eat now, shall we?" Remus nodded silently and Sirius sighed, making a face. After all they'd been through, the four of them, what with Sirius' family, James' angst with Lily, Remus' furry little problem and Peter's feelings of being left out, it was kind of weird. Especially because it was Remus. If it was James… well that would've been the funniest thing ever. Peter might've been a little awkward, but still hilarious. But there was something disconcerting about seeing this side of Moony. Usually he was fun-loving, yet ALWAYS reserved. He never imposed his thoughts on to anyone, never complained. Sirius had never even seen him cry. And yet now he was cradling his friend in his arms, the boy sniffling all over his robes, clinging to him as if for dear life. Remus had never, _ever_ been so open before. It felt as if he were somehow invading his privacy now that, as a child, he had no control over his emotions.

"Yeah, let's," James said, interrupting Sirius' thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Eat. Let's go eat." Sirius nodded and followed James, who picked up the cloak and led the way.

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"More treacle tart, sir?" the house-elves were asking, bringing plates and plates of food for little Remus.

"More pumpkin pie? Another glass of pumpkin juice, sirs?"

Remus nodded, "Thank you very much."

"We live to serve, sirs, more ice cream?"

"Yes, please… umph. Hm…"

"Some more apple pie? A cupcake?"

"Both please! Thank you Kiki," he said smiling, patting the house-elf on the head, "Thank you Bicky. Thank you Minky."

"Is Master wanting more cherry tart? Some more biscuits?" And the food kept coming.

"Huh," James stated, wided-eyed, watching the little kid stuff all those goodies into his mouth.

"Who knew, eh?" Sirius commented.

"That can't be healthy."

"Aw who cares. He's a little kid. He'll be fine."

"Wow." Lupin crammed two whole biscuits into his mouth.

"I feel you mate, I feel you."

They both watched in silence as Remus slurped up the last drops of his juice and politely, shyly asked for some more (_pretty please_). It was yet another ten minutes before he began looking a little green. Yet the house-elves continued to bring food.

"No thank you, no more," he finally said, but they continued offering. He eyed their dishes wistfully, but then groaned. "Pronses? Padflute?" he whined, "I do- I don't feel _good_."

James sighed sitting down on his right, "That's what you get for eating so much, Remus."

"Oink oink oink," Sirius chimed in from his left.

Remus groaned, definitely green now, leaning his head on the wooden kitchen table, the perfect size for a house-elf… or a little kid. "It hurts," he mumbled, pouting.

"What hurts?" James asked.

"My tummy hurts," and Remus clutched his stomach as if he were about to die. Funny how he was more open now than at first, just a shy little boy. Now he was openly wailing.

"Sh… don't eat so much desert next time then," James whispered, rubbing circles into the younger boy's back. Remus whimpered as James called over one of the house-elves, requesting them to get something for Remus' stomach from the infirmary. The house-elves were quick to comply, and soon held out a glass of fizzy liquid.

James smiled and offered it to Remus, who was suddenly shy and hesitant again. He looked at Sirius, questioning.

"Don't look at me, I don't know anything about that…" was Sirius' immediate reply.

James kicked him under the table and he sighed, "Sure, drink it Rem. You'll never know if you don't try, right? Always take risks."

James kicked him again, and he cried, "OW! Prongs, what do you want?" But by then Remus had already reached for the glass and gulped the liquid down, making a face.

"Blegh!" he sputtered, coughing, but the green tint of his face rapidly vanished. He grinned at Sirius, pleased, as he set the glass down, even though James had been the one to get the fizzy water.

"You okay now?" James asked.

"Very good," Remus said with a forceful nod, yawning widely for the umpteenth time and rubbing his eyes.

"Bedtime for this one, I think," James commented.

"But I'm not tired…" Remus protested as James lifted him up and rocked him a bit, yawning yet again.

"Remus," Sirius said matter-of-factly, "You're sleepy. Get some sleep."

"But… I wanna stay with you… Pons… Padsoot…" but even as he spoke, he settled into James' arms and closed his eyes, snuggling against his chest to get comfy.

"You still think he's got boogers for brains?" James asked Sirius jokingly as they approached the common room.

Sirius grinned, "Course I do. I just don't mind, that's all."

As they entered, Remus stirred, yawning, his eye growing wide.

"Progs," he whispered, "I have to go to the bathroom…"

Both James and Sirius froze, saying at the same time, "Er…"

Remus seemed to notice he'd said the wrong thing, "I'm sorry," he mumbled sleepily, "I can hold it." _And possibly wet the bed_, the older boys thought.

"Nah, it's okay," James said with a shrug, trying not to care, as they took him to the bathroom.

Sirius turned red in the face, busying himself by studying his reflection, while James mumbled, "Can you… you know… _go _on your own?"

Remus nodded, stretching and rubbing his eyes, "Uh-huh."

Sirius and James both slipped out. Both sat against the door waiting, James calling every so often, "You alright in there?"

And Remus whispering quietly, "_Yeah_…"

James glanced at the door, as if he could tell just by looking at it how the boy was doing. He sighed. "Taking care of little kids is hard work."

Sirius barked out a laugh, "You'll make a great father someday, James."

"So will you."

"Me? Nah. I was born to be free, Prongs. I couldn't possibly be a dad." And yet, he kind of hoped he was mistaken. If he ignored the fact that it was _Moony_ he was taking care of, the boy became quite pleasing. Already he felt like a beloved little brother. Much more beloved than Regulus, anyway.

"Remus? Done yet?" No answer. "Remus? Remus Lupin?" Nothing. Both of them stood and James gently eased the door open. Remus has finished a long time ago, it seemed. He'd made some sort of nest of towels in a corner and lay there, sleeping peacefully, not wanting to disturb anyone. Neither boy wanted to say it, for fear of appearing less manly, but both could find the boy… _cute_, for lack of a better word. He was sucking on his thumb, like a baby in need of comfort, and his face seemed so innocent and angelic. His soft brown hair was parted just so, and right then he whimpered, turning away from invisible demons, and both boys felt a fatherly instinct to protect. Sighing James scooped up the boy and carried him upstairs to their room, where Peter already slept, and deposited him on one of the beds. While Sirius pretended to get ready for bed, he snuck glances at James as he tended the boy: taking off the little shoes, removing the cloak, the shirt, and replacing it with boy-sized pajamas Dumbledore had supplied. Doing the same for the bottoms, then lifting him slightly and lifting the covers, sliding him into the little niche. Finally tucking in the sides and smoothing over his hair. _Maybe someday_, James thought vaguely, _someday it might be nice to have a son_.

"Good night," he whispered, although he knew the child couldn't hear him, and headed to the bed next to Remus', crawling in. Sirius stared at the ceiling quietly. In a way it didn't seem fair. Remus seemed to like James better than him, even though _they_ were closer friends. Then again, he had consulted him about several things. Maybe Remus wasn't picking favorites. Maybe it was James who was finally taking charge. This wasn't fair at all. James was supposed to be his comrade in arms, not another one of those serious suits with the picture perfect lives. Where was the wild adventure? Was he losing James? Or would he too, someday, "mature"? Closing his eyes, he mad a fervent wish to stay the same forever. Gone was his hope that he might have a child of his own. In the dark, far from Remus, watching his best friend, he longed to stay as they were. Forever Marauders.

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The chapters get longer! Hope you like it, and don't forget to read and reply!


	4. Adjusting

Disclaimer: Just about everything here belongs to JK *-_sigh_-* I just get to do evil things to them :)

Summary: When a potion goes wrong and Remus Lupin becomes a five-year-old, what will the rest of Hogwarts do? Marauder-era. R&R!

Author's note: I know the plot has been used a million times, just wanted to see what I could do with it.

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A cold finger hesitantly jabbed James' shoulder, and he turned, yawning, ignoring it. Again he was poked, a little harder this time. And again. And again. Annoyed and half-asleep, he slapped the hand away, only to hear a loud _thud_ moments later. Eyes bursting open he looked around mildly, sighing when he saw he'd knocked poor Remus flat on his back. The boy curled up into a little ball, eyes slightly teary. He withdrew a little, cradling his arm. Sirius was right on one thing: children were way too oversensitive.

"Sorry mate," James whispered, finally starting to wake up, but Remus quickly wiped his eyes and stood back up.

"It's okay. M' fine."

Yawning widely James rubbed his eyes and blinked around a little, "What's wrong?"

From a distance, Sirius listened, pretending to be asleep. He'd been awake for a while now, listening to the boy toss and turn in his sleep until he'd rolled off the bed, shivering. But he'd gone straight to James before Sirius could muster the courage to get out, so he remained silent.

"I… I…" the boy turned red, obviously embarrassed, and whispered in his ear, "I had a nightmare. It was stupid… Very stupid. M'..." he sniffed, "M' such a baby… don't tell Padfit…"

"What?"

"Don't… please don't say anything to Padfit… please?" Assuming Remus meant Padfoot, Sirius thought, why not tell him? Was the boy that angry at him? Was he that insignificant to Remus?

"Why not?" James asked, feeling the same confusion.

"He'll think I'm sissy… they all do… he'll think I'm a baby… I'm _not_ a baby!"'

"Okay, okay. I won't tell. Go to sleep now, okay?" James reached over and ruffled Remus' hair before leaning back and beginning to snore. Remus' shoulders fell, and the boy looked at his own bed anxiously. Then he spotted Sirius. Slowly, extremely tentative, he tiptoed over.

"_Padder_?" he whispered (referring to Padfoot?), but Sirius said nothing. With a sharp intake of breath Remus crawled onto the bed, whispering, "Maybe just fer a little while…" and then yawning. With the utmost care he peeled back a corner of covers and slipped in, falling asleep within minutes.

It was only then that Sirius allowed himself to open his eyes and stare at the sleeping kid before him. The parted lips, the smooth skin of a child, so vulnerable. In his sleep Remus whimpered, his hand in a claw-like pose, and Sirius sighed. The werewolf stigma would probably haunt Lupin forever. It made Sirius wish more than ever there were some permanent cure for lycanthropy; no child should have to go through something like that, and he knew Remus had been infected long before entering Hogwarts.

"Sh…" he whispered, and impulsively reached over to smooth out the kid's brown hair, "Sh…"

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"James Potter," Lily hissed, "Don't you dare." It was morning already, and James had held his wand out, ready to spray a torrent of water at Snoring Sirius Black, when Lily Evans walked in.

"Ah, Evans," he drawled, withdrawing his wand, "Your wish is my command."

She huffed, "I say we give Black the first shift with Remus. Oddly enough, he seems attached… What?"

James was snickering, "Oh, nothing, nothing."

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Sirius stirred finally quite a while later, yawning and rubbing his eyes. His black hair was tousled and the sheets all crinkly, and he relaxed. With a deep groan he stretched, eyes closed, the back of his left hand grazing Remus' head. It was then that he remembered their current predicament and realized, looking around the empty room, that he'd been left in charge of the boy for now. Though he was still asleep, a frown marred Remus' face, eyes scrunching up every now and then.

Suddenly Remus was stretching his arms sluggishly, as if through water, clawing at the air, wincing. More nightmares? And then the magic in him exploded, as it often did with young children who were yet unable to control it, in the form of a shared vision. Sirius could see exactly what Remus saw when he screamed, the looming figure of Fenrir Greyback, the dreaded, full-grown werewolf. The sharp yellow teeth and slobber, the terrifying claws, the blood. And the full-moon looming overhead, watching mockingly as Remus' cries of pain and sheer terror invaded the air. And then Remus, real-life Remus, was thrashing in the bed, much stronger than the night before, struggling against the sheets for dear life. Sirius had to grit his teeth to shake off the vision that invaded every one of his senses, fighting to sit up and instinctively pull the boy against him, arms tightly wound around his flailing limbs.

"Sh…" he whispered into Remus' ear as they boy's eyes snapped open, his jerking body finally beginning to settle against Sirius' chest, "Sh…" Remus was gasping for breath, tears streaming down his red cheeks, his heartbeat thundering, and Sirius held on the shaking boy as best he could.

"It was just a nightmare," he said, a feeling of relief taking over him as the boy finally settled down, "It was just a bad dream."

Slowly squirming around to face Sirius, Remus mumbled, downcast, "M' sorry I'm such a baby… It was a stupid dream." He twitched a little, wringing his thin fingers nervously. Sirius could hardly help the feeling of guilt that invaded him then. How could he have ever resented the child? At that tender age he had already suffered through so much…

"It's okay Remus, you don't have to impress me," he whispered in response, pressing the trembling body his chest as a protective parent would, "I have nightmares too sometimes…" Though of course, hardly comparable. Nothing in Sirius' wildest dreams would ever compare to the raw, real experiences of Remus J Lupin.

"You do?"

"All the time."

This seemed to settle the kid, who mumbled, "You won't stop being my friend right? Mummy said not to tell… Maybe I'd be better off… gone…" Gone? What was Remus talking about? He was afraid they would leave him? He was their friend! A Marauder!

"Remus, we'll always be your best friends, no matter what," Sirius replied, smoothing back the soft brown hair. "Come along now, let's get you ready. Lily will have me murdered if she thinks I'm mistreating you or anything," Sirius said with a grin, pleased with Remus' brown eyes, now wide, hopeful, happy.

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"Er… you know what to do, right?" Sirius asked, pushing the barefoot, pajama-clad boy into the bathroom, "So you get cleaned up, a bath and all, and I'll just wait outside."

"Mummy always gives me a bath," Remus replied, blinking with surprise.

"Oh does she now? Haha… Um… Gee, Remus… Maybe you shouldn't take a bath today… who needs one?"

Remus instantly paled, "Mummy says I _always_ hafta take a bath no matter _what_! I hafta be clean."

"Haha, er… right then. Um, let's get the water running then, shall we?" Sirius closed the door behind him, gulping, sliding in the plug to the bathtub/shower and opening the faucet. For a while both sat in silence, watching the tub fill with soothing warm water.

"Okay… let's do this…" Sirius said, clearing his throat, "Um… uh… okay, this is what we're gonna do…" He grunted, lifting Remus by the armpits (was the boy heavier than yesterday?) and dropping him into the water, still dressed.

It splashed everywhere. Remus gasped, startled, looking down as the water soaked his pajamas, and then at Sirius, "Wha… ?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes, "It's either this or no bath, kiddo."

Remus scowled, plopping down in the tub and splashing even more water all over the floor.

"No need to be a spoilsport," Sirius chuckled, checking the different bottles of shampoo. "Huh…" He picked up a purple bottle, sniffing and wrinkling his nose. One of those flowery things. "Ah…" he shrugged, pouring out a generous pool of violet liquid on his hand.

"Now c'mere." Remus bit his lip, closing his eyes tightly, the way little kids do, as Sirius started to rub the smelly mess into his hair.

"Hm…" the little kid murmured, "Smells like pretty stuff."

"Pretty stuff? Blimey! And here _I _thought _you_ were the articulate one…"

"What's artichuke mean?"

"Nothing, nothing… keep your eyes closed. Er…" A mess of purple foam now covered Remus' hair, dripping down all over the tub, clinging to the wet pajamas, "Hold your breath!"

"Wha-" _SPLASH!_ Sirius had pushed Remus down into the water, splashing even _more_ water all over the bathroom and himself.

Remus emerged seconds later, spluttering, his hair plastered down, his clothes completely soaked through and through. His eyes were red from the foamy water, and he bent over, coughing.

"Oi Remus? Remus? You okay?"

_cough cough_ "Yeah." _cough cough_

"You sure?" He frowned.

Remus nodded, still coughing. He leaned over the rim of the tub, crawling out and splashing onto the floor. Sirius couldn't help but laugh as Remus finally cleared his airway and looked up, eyes wide and innocent.

"Come on kid, I think you've had enough of a bath." Remus nodded, eyeing his wet pajamas with distaste.

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Fortunately Remus was able change clothes competently enough, allowing Sirius to adjust his shirt and vest afterwards.

"I'm bored," he mumbled as Sirius pulled the vest off, frowned, and then tugged it back onto him for the fifth time. Clearly he was no longer as shy as before.

"You're not the only one."

As Remus' head popped out from the vest, he mumbled, "You don't not like kids anymore, right?"

Sirius rolled his eyes, "Right…" but the boy wouldn't sit still.

"Here, maybe this'll calm you down," he said tossing a chocolate bar out of his pocket to the kid. He lunged at it, sniffing the chocolate deeply before throwing himself at Sirius and hugging him tightly.

"You're my bestest friend ever!"

"And don't you forget it," Sirius said with a laugh, as the boy finally let go and wolfed down the candy, "Wow… I knew Lupin was crazy about chocolate, but still… Oi, Remus."

"Yeah?" Chocolate stains decorated his pink cheeks.

"You want to go have some breakfast?"

"Yeah!"

"C'mere then…" The boy jumped into his arms and, wincing only slightly under the weight, Sirius carried the boy out of the room. Several chocolate covered pancakes later the pair was headed out to the pitch. As soon as he saw the brooms in the air, Remus started to shake his head.

"No, no, no, no, no."

Sirius frowned, staring at the kid, "No what?"

"No brooms."

"Why not?"

Remus flushed before muttering, "Fine, let's go."

But Sirius wasn't convinced. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, you'll laugh."

"No, come on, tell me."

"But you'll make fun of me!"

"I promise I won't. Come on, where's the trust, eh Remus?"

Reus whispered something intelligible.

"What?"

"I'm sorta… afraid of heights." Sirius frowned, confused. Remus had never said so before. He'd never admitted anything. Sure, he'd make up excuses, but they usually managed to get him to tag along with one of the school brooms. He sighed, what a drag. It would've been great to fly around, wind in his hair, mocking the students in their classes.

"Fine, fine, let's head back then, shall we?"

But Remus timidly pointed outside, "Can we go see the garden?"

"What garden?"

"Lily said there was a pretty garden outside."

"Did she now?"

"Mmm-hmm." Sirius couldn't help it. Remus looked like he was trying so hard to be grown up. He started tickling the little boy round the middle, and the kid squealed and squirmed out of his arms, running outside.

"I'm coming to get you!" Sirius laughed, and Remus shrieked with delight, running down the steps. Just as he reached the last one he tripped, the thin limbs going everywhere as he flopped down on the floor face-first.

"Ow…" he murmured, trying to blink away the tears that now brimmed in his eyes, "Ow!"

"Bloody hell," Sirius whispered, running to Remus' side, "You okay?"

"It hurts…" Remus whined, as Sirius lifted him to his feet, "Ow!" There were light wounds on his forearms and chin, the rest was only bruising.

"Let's go to the nurse then, okay?"

"No… can we please see the garden first?" Remus pleaded, wincing.

"Oh, all right then, here, let me…" He bent down and easily placed the boy atop his shoulders.

The wounds forgotten, Remus cheered, "Go Padders, go!" Sirius laughed, taking off his tie and winding it around his forehead, the knot to the side, and started to run towards the greenhouses.

"Faster, faster!" Remus cried. Sirius was quick to comply.

"Wheee!" the kid squealed, tiny fingers digging deeply into Sirius' now knotted hair.

"Faster, Padder! Faster!"

"What happened to shy, quiet Lupin, eh?" Sirius muttered, but he complied, turning faster and faster around in circles and chuckling all along at Remus' excited glees. He started to jump up and down in front of the first greenhouse, Remus giggling as he tried to keep his balance.

"How's that then, eh Lupin? Brill enough for you?" The little boy laughed louder.

And then suddenly the laughter ceased and Remus raised a hand over Sirius' shoulder, "Hiya Prongses an Lily!"

"Huh?" Sirius turned around. James, Lily and Peter, having apparently just exited Greenhouse 2 and caught him mid-dance, were watching, a more than surprised expression on their faces.

"Ahem," James cleared his throat, "I thought you didn't like kids, Padfoot."

"Heh. I don't." He quickly bent over and set Remus on the ground

"That's not true," Remus whispered, cupping his hands around his mouth, "Padder's is my bestest friend ever!"

"Oh is that so?" Lily asked, smirking.

"You know, that Slytherin look suits you perfectly Evans. _Devilwoman_," Sirius hissed as Remus scrambled into the greenhouse ahead of them.

Lily pouted, "What… little ol' me?"

"Lovely, Evans, simply lovely," James commented, messing up his hair, and she glared at him, stalking after Remus.

Sirius sighed, "I'm just gonna go jump off a cliff now."

"Good luck with that," James murmured, no longer paying any attention, his eyes trained on Lily, "See ya later."

"Er, Sirius?" Peter piped up.

"Oh yeah… Peter. What is it?" Sirius asked, still irritated, pulling off the tie.

"It's the moon…"

"What about it?"

"The full moon… it's tomorrow…"

Sirius' blood ran cold, the tie slipping from his hand and fluttering to the ground. "Are you sure?"

Peter nodded vigorously, the mop of hair on his head flapping up and down as he did so. "I checked. Five times. And then I checked with Professor Garran. And Professor McGonagall. Just in case."

Sirius gulped, before shaking his head. "We'll figure something out… we'll figure something out."

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DUN DUN DUN! Just had to leave you on that cliffhanger there. Read and Reply soon!


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